‘I've been asked to do that and I've turned it down' – Rory McIlroy on US captain Keegan Bradley's Ryder Cup dilemma
McIlroy, aged 36 and currently world number two, has plenty of time left at the top as a player, but it is a dilemma facing United States captain Keegan Bradley, whose form this year has elevated him to 12th in the world and 10th on America's qualification list.
'I've been asked to do that and I've turned it down,' said McIlroy, who was the first player to automatically qualify for Europe's team for next month's event at Bethpage in New York.
'The idea of me being a playing captain sometime soon has come up and I've shot it down straight away because I don't think you can do it.
'If you'd have said it 20 years ago I'd say it was probably possible to do, but how big of a spectacle it is and everything that's on the line in a Ryder Cup now, I just think it would be a very difficult position to be in.
'There's a lot of things that people don't see that the captain does the week of the Ryder Cup, especially now that the Ryder Cup has become so big.
'The captain's only going to be able to play one session on Friday, one session on Saturday. Would you rather not have a player that has the flexibility to go twice if he's playing well?'
The idea of me being a playing captain sometime soon has come up and I've shot it down straight away because I don't think you can do it
Rory McIlroy
On Thursday McIlroy will tee off alongside world number one Scottie Scheffler in the BMW Championship at Caves Valley Golf Club outside Baltimore.
The Ulsterman opted to skip the opening event of the FedEx Cup as he knew he was already guaranteed a spot in the PGA Tour's season-ending Tour Championship next week and that drew some criticism.
However, McIlroy argued his year is far from over as, in addition to the Ryder Cup, he will head back to the DP World Tour for a number of events, including the Irish Open and BMW Championship at Wentworth, before trying to win his seventh Race to Dubai title in November.
'A lot of the guys aren't 18 years into their professional career. I feel like I'm in a little bit of a different position,' he added.
'I'm playing nine times between now and the end of the year, so I've still got a pretty busy stretch coming up and I just think that extra week off will do me good with the events coming up.'
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RTÉ News
29 minutes ago
- RTÉ News
Keegan Bradley considering playing captain role at Ryder Cup
In what could be a first for a pre-tournament press conference, Keegan Bradley was asked only briefly on Wednesday about being defending champion of the BMW Championship, and about the course, Caves Valley Golf Club. Mostly, Bradley talked about his role as captain of the US Ryder Cup team, the September event's course, Bethpage Black, and if he would use a captain's pick on the current number ten player in the Ryder Cup standings. That player is Bradley, making for a compelling narrative and much speculation as the FedEx Cup play-offs continue this week and lead to the Tour Championship. The top six players in the Ryder Cup points standings after this week's tournament will automatically qualify for the squad that faces Europe on 26-28 September in Farmingdale, New York. Scottie Scheffler, J.J. Spaun and XanderSchaufele have locked up three spots. Justin Thomas at seven, Collin Morikawa and Ben Griffin currently have more points than Bradley, who if he doesn't automatically qualify, could use one of six captain's picks on himself after the Tour Championship. "I've been saying all year, you can't expect to be on the team unless you're in the top six," said Bradley. "My goal is to go out there, whether I was Ryder Cup captain or not this week, and play well and play well next week at the Tour Championship as well. "There's definitely a lot more on my plate here these next couple of Ryder Cup has always been so far away, and now it's right there. Things are definitely amping up. I still have a lot to prove just as well as everyone around me on the list." Arnold Palmer was the last playing captain in the biennial contest -- in 1963. Rory McIlroy said that he considers Bradley one of the United States' 12 best players. But McIlroy also believes there's too much on the plate of a Ryder Cup team captain during the event to add playing duties. "(McIlroy) might be right," Bradley said. "We don't know. No one knows. Yeah, like everybody's telling me to start the year that a player can't be captain and have a good year. For me, I feel like this is one of my best years that I've ever had." Bradley is currently 14th in the FedEx Cup standings and 12th in the Official World Golf Ranking. He has eight career wins on the PGA Tour, including the 2024 BMW Championship and this year at the Travelers Championship on 22 June. He has made a habit in his career of asking others for advice who have gone through an experience such as playing in a major, playing the last tee time on Sunday or facing the media. But for this question, no one has personal experience. "I certainly have a lot of concerns, as well as everybody else, but I have the most incredible vice captains, including Jim Furyk, who's been on these teams and been captain a bunch of times," Bradley said. "Quite frankly, I've been leaning on them more than any other captain ever anyways, even if I'm not playing. "We're ready for this if it happens. I'm not sure it's going to. I can truly sit here right now and say I don't know what's going to happen. I have to look at myself just like any other player trying to make the team. I'm 10th in points right now, and that's not sixth." He has gratitude for his peers' support no matter his decision, including McIlroy and world number one Scheffler, who said on Wednesday, "I think he's a guy we'd all love to have on the team. The intensity that he's brought as a captain, I mean, he has definitely exceeded my expectations as far as a captain. He's done a great job." Rickie Fowler and Patrick Cantlay also joined the chorus of supporting Bradleyas a playing captain. "I can tell you, honestly, it means the world to me to hear that. I haven't ever really felt that in my career," Bradley said. "It's really touching. It really means a lot. The thing I've enjoyed most is getting to know these guys better. I was really a closed-off player for most of my career. "Getting to know the guys more and getting to learn who they are, and then I think as a golfer, or as an athlete or a businessman, whatever it is, when you feel the respect of your peers, that's the ultimate. To hear that from two players of that caliber really means a lot."
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
‘I don't think you can do it' – Rory McIlroy reveals why he ‘shot down' Ryder Cup captaincy amid Keegan Bradley dilemma
He responded to backlash against skipping the first event of the FedEx Cup TEEING OFF 'I don't think you can do it' – Rory McIlroy reveals why he 'shot down' Ryder Cup captaincy amid Keegan Bradley dilemma MASTERS champion Rory McIlroy revealed he has already 'shot down' the prospect of becoming a playing Ryder Cup captain in the future. The Holywood hero was Europe's leading points scorer in their victory in Rome two years ago and said the idea had already been raised with him but he rejected it out of hand. World No 2 McIlroy, 36, has plenty of time left at the top as a player, but the doubling-up conundrum is one facing United States captain Keegan Bradley — whose form this year has elevated him to 12th in the world and 10th on America's qualification list. McIlroy — who was the first player to automatically qualify for Europe's team for next month's event at Bethpage in New York — said: 'I've been asked to do that and I've turned it down 'The idea of me being a playing captain sometime soon has come up and I've shot it down straight away because I don't think you can do it. 'If you'd have said it 20 years ago I'd say it was probably possible to do. 'But how big of a spectacle it is and everything that's on the line in a Ryder Cup now, I just think it would be a very difficult position to be in. 'There's a lot of things that people don't see that the captain does the week of the Ryder Cup, especially now that the Ryder Cup has become so big. 'The captain's only going to be able to play one session on Friday, one session on Saturday. 'Would you rather not have a player that has the flexibility to go twice if he's playing well?' Today, McIlroy will tee off alongside world No 1 and recently crowned Open champion Scottie Scheffler in the BMW Championship at Caves Valley Golf Club outside Baltimore. The Ireland Olympian opted to skip the opening event of the FedEx Cup as he knew he was already guaranteed a spot in the PGA Tour's season-ending Tour Championship next week — and that drew some criticism. 'Green Jacket- It's on the yacht' - Rory McIlroy parties and jokes with golf fans on break in a beach club in St Tropez However, McIlroy argued his year is far from over as — in addition to the Ryder Cup — he will head back to the DP World Tour for a number of events, including the Irish Open at the K Club next month and BMW Championship at Wentworth. He will then try to win his seventh Race to Dubai title in November. He added: 'A lot of the guys aren't 18 years into their professional career. 'I feel like I'm in a little bit of a different position. 'I'm playing nine times between now and the end of the year, so I've still got a pretty busy stretch coming up and I just think that extra week off will do me good with the events coming up.' Justin Rose's play-off victory over JJ Spaun on Sunday guaranteed his place on Luke Donald's Ryder Cup team. But the Englishman — now preparing for his SIXTH Ryder Cup, having won four — said he had not been putting too much pressure on himself after being given a heads-up by Donald. Rose said: 'Their preference was for me to be on the team, I just needed to kind of give them some decent evidence to sort of get me on the team. 'I haven't been putting myself under a lot of pressure really because of that, because I felt like playing a little bit better in Scotland and the Open was sort of enough to make sure they knew my game was still right there.'
The 42
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Michael Obafemi Memorably contributed a goal and assist in Ireland's 3-0 June 2022 Nations League win over Scotland, but it's fair to say that it hasn't worked out as hoped for player and country alike since then. The striker has 12 caps in total, but has only featured once since 2023, largely owing to injury and form-related issues at club level. The 25-year-old did appear twice in Burnley's 2023-24 Premier League campaign, but has not worn the club's colours in almost two years, while he has not made a single league start for the team since joining from Swansea in January 2023. In the last two seasons, he has had relatively underwhelming loan spells in the Championship with Millwall and Plymouth, scoring four goals in 43 appearances. Another exit — either temporary or permanent — is expected, with a move to the Turkish side, Kasimpasa, already falling through during the summer.
